H&LA Vice President and hospitality consultant, Laurel Keller, was quoted in a Cleveland Plain Dealer article noting the conversion of the Wyndham Hotel in downtown Cleveland to a Crowne Plaza.

Published by: Susan Glasser/Cleveland Plain Dealer

Published Date: August 2017

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Wyndham Cleveland at Playhouse Square, a veteran in downtown hospitality, will convert to a Crowne Plaza next month.

The new Crowne Plaza Cleveland at Playhouse Square will feature newly renovated rooms, public spaces and a new, yet-to-be-named restaurant.

“We’re working hard to have all of this completed by early September,” said Art Falco, the president and CEO of the Playhouse Square Foundation, which owns the 205-room hotel at the corner of Euclid Avenue and Huron Road. It opened in 1995.

He said the change was spurred, in part, by increased competition from the growing number of new hotels in downtown Cleveland.

“As you take a look over a period of time — every hotel needs to get refreshed,” said Falco.

The foundation was attracted to Crowne Plaza in part because of its position within the InterContinental Hotels Group, a huge network of properties that share a reservation system and rewards program.

The new Cleveland property will open amid an IHG campaign to boost the Crowne Plaza brand with what it’s calling Crowne Plaza Accelerate. Among its components: The WorkLife Room – “the guest room of the future” — with more space to work, socialize and rest.

It will be downtown’s only Crowne Plaza, a brand noted for its business-friendly vibe. The current Westin Cleveland Hotel, on St. Clair Avenue, was previously a Crowne Plaza.

Laurel Keller, vice president of Lakewood’s Hotel and Leisure Advisors, said older downtown hotels must invest to stay competitive.

“You have to keep up or you will lose market share – it’s as simple as that,” said Keller. “Guests have so many choices.”

To read the entire article, click here.